These Shows Lost In The Shuffle (1 Viewer)

[Frank Soyke]

With all the talk about shows we've been waiting for yearly (Wonder Years, Batman), the ones that we have been told aren't coming out or stalled due to licensing issues (Maude, WKRP, 77, etc.) and the stalled series we want resumed (Hillbillies, Barnaby, Love Boat, Happy Days, etc), I thought about some of the once popular series we almost never hear mentioned with regard to releases or discussed here much. Now, I'm not talking about one and done shows but shows that were ratings hits and were on for at least 2 seasons. There are a few I wanted to list and pose the question, why are these former hits not even a whisper in the wind with regard to releases?

1) Julia

2) Mayberry R.F.D.

3) Bachelor Father

4) Name Of The Game

5) Run For Your Life

6) Ghost and Mrs. Muir

 

[Frank Soyke]

Throw The Defenders on that list. I missed it the first go round

 

[Ron1973]

I think had Mayberry RFD been a CBS property it would be out already.

 

[Jack P]

There was once a report about MPI licensing "Ghost And Mrs. Muir" back around 2005-2006 I think it was, but then after that no follow-up report and it never came off.

 

[Neil Brock]

1) Julia

2) Mayberry R.F.D.

3) Bachelor Father

4) Name Of The Game

5) Run For Your Life

6) Ghost and Mrs. Muir

1 - owned by Fox

2 - probably see from Warner Archive at some point

3 - not a lot of interest, as is the case with most 50s sitcoms

4 - needs a good deal of music clearance or replacement

5 - dual ownership between Universal and Roncom

6 - see item one

The Defenders - type of show that falls in the category of CBS will see it as too prestigious to license out yet they won't do anything with it themselves. Plus, no tape masters so everything has to be transfered from film.

 

[JamesSmith]

Farmer's DaughterMajor Dadnanny and the ProfessorJames

 

[Randy Korstick]

I'll Second: "Nanny and The Professor"

Farmer's DaughterMajor Dadnanny and the ProfessorJames

 

[Randy Korstick]

Nevermind. I just looked up Nanny and The Professor and saw its another Fox show so theres another one I can cross off my list as never coming out.

I'll Second: "Nanny and The Professor"

 

[Vahan_Nisanain]

There's a bunch of NATP episodes on Hulu. Poor quality, but most, if not all of them, appear to be complete.

 

[JamesSmith]

What about Farmer's Daughter?james

 

[Joe Lugoff]

Why single out "Bachelor Father" from the 1950s? Lots of hit sitcoms from that decade have no chance of getting season sets on DVD: "I Married Joan," "My Little Margie," "Our Miss Brooks," "December Bride," "The Bob Cummings Show" aka "Love That Bob," "The Life of Riley," "Private Secretary" aka "Susie" and several others. There were attempts at "Make Room for Daddy/The Danny Thomas Show" and "The Phil Silvers Show" aka "Sgt. Bilko," but they fizzled out.

I purposely left out "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet," which is supposed to come out, but I'll believe that when I see it.

We have to face the sad fact that the 1950s are now six decades ago, so these things are only remembered fondly (or unfondly, in many cases) by people like me who are getting up there in years. Most people have no interest in anything that's even ten years old, much less sixty.

A woman once got so disgusted with nostalgia for the old days, she snapped out, "I like to live in the here and now!" All I could think was what a depressing life that would be. The way I look at it most people don't care about "My Little Margie," not because it isn't very good, but only because it's old. I care about it, not because it's good (which it isn't), but only because it's old.

BTW, I've been watching "Bachelor Father" a lot on Antenna TV and I think it's one of the good ones. But I think we'll see peace in the Middle East before we see season sets of it on DVD, so in other words, it won't be happening -- ever.

 

[Ron1973]

And I'm the exact opposite of that lady. I often quip I was born in the wrong decade. Of course I grew up hearing about the shows you mentioned and how fondly my parents thought of them.

The problem is, for some people at least, the old shows don't hold up as well to them now. My dad loved "Cisco Kid" growing up and he had a chance to see it last year again. He told me how disappointed he was. He said he guessed it was the fact he saw it as a kid and now as an adult it appears over-simplified and not something he'd want to watch again.

 

[Joe Lugoff]

Yep, same here. As a kid I thought "I Married Joan" and "My Little Margie" were the height of hilarity. I even thought they were clever, witty and sophisticated. I watch them now on YouTube and they're stupid and unfunny. But they're still attached to all kinds of good nostalgic memories for me.

 

[Matt Hough]

Add to those Oh, Susanna! and The People's Choice.

 

[Gary OS]

And I'm the exact opposite of that lady. I often quip I was born in the wrong decade.

You and me both, Ron. I was born right in the middle of the 60's, but have always felt and wished I was born in an earlier decade. Taking a big caveat out of the equation (WW II), I'd have loved to have grown up as a kid in the 40's going to see Abbott & Costello movies in the theater and then watching the TV shows of the 50's as a young adult. I didn't have that privilege, but I did get to experience those things on TV in the 70's. Funny, because even as a child I always gravitated to the "older fare" over the current shows of that decade. And it's never changed. I'll take a good b/w TV show from the 50's over something from the 70's any day of the week. What a huge difference just a couple of decades made!


Gary "I agree with Joe that as each day goes by the chances grow dimmer that older sitcoms will be released - too much time has passed" O.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I would love to have the Defenders on DVD or Blu. I adored that series when I was a kid.

 

[Ron1973]

You and me both, Ron. I was born right in the middle of the 60's, but have always felt and wished I was born in an earlier decade. Taking a big caveat out of the equation (WW II), I'd have loved to have grown up as a kid in the 40's going to see Abbott & Costello movies in the theater and then watching the TV shows of the 50's as a young adult. I didn't have that privilege, but I did get to experience those things on TV in the 70's. Funny, because even as a child I always gravitated to the "older fare" over the current shows of that decade. And it's never changed. I'll take a good b/w TV show from the 50's over something from the 70's any day of the week. What a huge difference just a couple of decades made!


Gary "I agree with Joe that as each day goes by the chances grow dimmer that older sitcoms will be released - too much time has passed" O.

I love the 50's and the 60's. Yeah, I know the 60's were a turbulent era but that's where I should've been in my mind. The sitcoms of the 60's are bread and butter for me.

I guess part of the thing is no one told me I shouldn't like the older stuff. You could pick almost any channel on the dial growing up and there were re-runs of classic TV.

In the morning time (when I was out of school), I could catch My Favorite Martian and Gomer Pyle on one channel.

Another station offered Daniel Boone, Three Stooges and (later on) Lost in Space and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea not to mention classic cartoons.

WREG in Memphis was THE hotbed for classic TV. Hillbillies, color Gunsmoke, Hogan's Heroes, Andy Griffith, Beaver, Munsters, Addams Family, Dick Van Dyke, Green Acres, Newhart, Mary Tyler Moore, and Real McCoys. It was a tear-jerker to me when they replaced all of those shows with infomercials in the 90's.

WMC in Memphis had Petticoat Junction, Flipper, Guns of Will Sonnett and Laredo on Sundays and Lone Ranger on Saturday after Championship Wrestling went off.

 

[Neil Brock]

There's a bunch of NATP episodes on Hulu. Poor quality, but most, if not all of them, appear to be complete.

I think the quality is pretty good. They're definitely remastered and they all come in at 25:30. Almost the full first 2 seasons, minus 3 episodes I think.